It may come as little surprise, but corruption in the public sector across the Middle East and North Africa is increasing as political unrest continues to destabilise governments and impact institutions serving citizens, according to a new report.

Sudan, Libya and Iraq are currently deemed to have the most corrupt public sector institutions in the Middle East and North Africa, according to the Corruption Perceptions Index published by Transparency International. As civil war continues to rage in Syria, spilling into Lebanon, and armed militias rankle Libya and Yemen, the public sectors in these countries are being marred by illegal activities and individuals looking to profit from their position.

The Corruption Perceptions Index, which is based on data from independent institutions specialising in governance and business climate analysis, ranks countries on a score from 0, which is perceived to be “highly corrupt”, to 100, which is deemed to have “very clean” public sector institutions.

Approximately 84% of the countries in the MENA region scored below 50, which is a higher rate than three other regions of the Americas, the European Union and Western Europe, and Asia Pacific. However, the rate was lower than the two remaining regions – Sub-Saharan Africa; and Eastern Europe and Central Asia, where 90% and 95% respectively of countries scored below 50.

Globally, New Zealand, the Scandinavian countries and Singapore were deemed to have the cleanest public sector systems, while Somalia, Afghanistan, North Korea and Sudan were viewed as the most corrupt.